Hartman H. Lomawaima (November 11, 1949 – July 8, 2008) was a

Hopi The Hopi are a Native American ethnic group who primarily live on the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona, United States. As of the 2010 census, there are 19,338 Hopi in the country. The Hopi Tribe is a sovereign nation within the Unite ...

museum director. He served as the fifth director of the Arizona State Museum, and was the first Native American to hold the position. He also was the first Native American to hold a position as director of a state agency in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

, and was on the board of trustees for the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. Lomawaima was a

born in the village of Supawlavi on

Second Mesa Second Mesa is a census-designated place (CDP) in Navajo County, Arizona, on the Hopi Reservation, atop the 5,700-foot (1,740 m) mesa. As of the 2010 census, the CDP population was 962, spread among three Hopi Indian villages, Musungnuvi (or Mi ...

. He graduated from

Northern Arizona University Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a public research university based in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was founded in 1899 as the final public university established in the Arizona Territory, 13 years before Arizona was admitted as the 48th state. ...

, and did his graduate work at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. Lomawaima first job was as a senior administrative officer at the Hearst Museum of Anthropology,

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant univ ...

. He and his wife, Tsianina Lomawaima, subsequently moved to the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

, where he taught. In 1984, Lomawaima became the associate director at the Arizona State Museum, and professor of American Indian studies at the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

. He was appointed interim director of the museum in 2002 upon the resignation of the previous director and became the permanent director in 2004.

External links

* accessed July 11, 2008
Brosseau, Carli (July 10, 2008) "AZ museum director Lomawaima dies" ''Tucson Citizen''
accessed July 11, 2008
Arizona State Museum Website (July 10, 2008)

Allen, Lee (July 21, 2008) "Holy Road: Native cultural icon Hartman Lomawaima dies at 58" ''Indian Country Today''
accessed July 28, 2008 {{DEFAULTSORT:Lomawaima, Hartman H. 1949 births 2008 deaths Directors of museums in the United States Northern Arizona University alumni Harvard University alumni University of Washington faculty University of Arizona faculty